Nevin
12-23-2010, 07:43 PM
Ok, so this has all been a long time coming. I'd like to give you some background first to help get things explained as to why on earth I even attemped such an obscure swap in the first place.
There are NOT many pictures, because most of the work is just an average tranny swap and there are plenty of threads about that, so mine are a bit more specific.
A little over 2 years ago I saw a 4.11 JDM tranny from a board member in the for sale forum. He'd gotten it when he purchased a JDM WRX motor, and had no need for the transmission. So, lucky for me I got it cheap. Having been told it was a 4.11 transmission, I then purchased a ready-to-go 4.11 LSD rear differential from young tom and figured I was golden.
I then attempted to put the transmission in one fine weekend. Yes, I said attempted. After I finally got the old tranny and everything out, I realzed that it would in fact NOT work with what I had. The thing that I noticed was the rear mount being different. Then began a storm of text and picture messages to tom asking him what on earth I should do. I felt bad for the guy, honestly.
So, I put the old trans back in that same weekend and was very sad because it wasn't what I thought it was. What I thought it was? It was indeed a 4.11 JDM transmission, but there's more to it. The JDM transmission was unlike the USDM one because of a few things. 1. It had a gear-type center diff, which was the only thing I could notice from the outside. This meant that I needed a different rear transmission mount to mount it correctly. 2. It was a constant 35f/65r split which meant I needed the right TCU to run the thing, or I'd be up a creek in no time.
Here are the two transmissions sitting side by side. The only physical difference is the rear snout. The US tranny is nearer, while the JDM one is further away.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap005.jpg
After I figured this out I didn't know what to do. The project was put on the backburner while I was doing other projects. I made an intake for the car, exhaust, and swaybars had begun to eat up a lot of SVX time. After a while, the swaybars are what allowed me to make the connections I needed to get the correct parts to run the tranny in the car.
My hats off to ron (needforspeed) because without his help, I would not have gotten the parts I needed. We traded a few swaybars and transmission components and I think we both came out with a good deal in the end!
So, I finally had the correct rear mounts and the correct TCU. Now what to do? Spend more money on the project, of course! My next contacts were to Michael at ECUtune. Running his 1v5 ECU had given my car some nice pep, so I figured I'd try out a few more of his parts. I shipped the JDM TCU to him and had him work his magic on it. Also, the valvebody was removed and shipped to him so he could perform his upgrades. I want to eventually throw another 30-40% more power at the car, so I wanted the transmission to be able to take it. I figured these things were good insurance. Also purchased (not from ECUtune) was an auxilliary transmission cooler complete with its own 10" fan and thermostat. The stock cooler will be bypassed, but these parts have yet to be installed. That will be another winter project.
So now I had all the parts I needed and I felt I had made the right upgrades, so it was time to put up or shut up! I was attempting the 2nd known tranny swap of this kind in the U.S. (the first being ron)
So, last weekend was the date to do it.
Here's the car all the work was happening to.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap001.jpg
Here's a shot of the tranny out, the rear main seal replaced, and the "kidney" plate taken off and re-sealed, and the flexplate re-installed.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap002.jpg
A shot of one of the rear mounts used in the swap. I say one because the VTD rear mount is actually a 3-piece unit. The amazing thing is that everything bolts exactly into place. I was flabberghasted! I thought for sure I'd have to drill a hole or something, but no. Everything was there waiting for the other parts to be attached. No mods at all to the cradle that held the mounts.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap006.jpg
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap007.jpg
And sorry, I forgot to take pictures of the rear of the tranny in the car at the time, but here's everything all tucked up in there.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap009.jpg
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap010.jpg
And next, me swapping around the TCU components.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap011.jpg
So, really that about wrapped it up. One mistake I made was accidentally installing the WRX tcu instead of the correct one that Michael had burned me, but once I got that replaced there were really no problems at all.
This was about as easy as a swap as someone could do. Really. The worst part was...I really don't know! All we basically did was take the old one out, put the new mounts on the new tranny, and put it right in. It took us about 5 hours to get it all in, but we really weren't pushing it in any way. Actually, there was lots of standing around and general shooting of the breeze while this was taking place.
I don't have any vids of the car at the track yet, but before the swap it ran a 15.5. I'd really like to run a solid 14, and the way it feels I don't think that's out of line at all.
So, would I recommend the VTD swap to others? Yes, absolutely. Mine was entirely painless once I finally got all the right parts. That would be the trick, actually. You need a JDM TCU to run the thing, and the mounts. I emailed a dealership a while back before I ran into ron, and to get the appropriate mounts was something like $220 shipped to me here in Iowa. Not a horrible price, but not amazing. And keep in mind that when i got mine, I really had no idea what it was. It more or less fell into my posession.
Here are the rough prices (my memory isn't the best) of things that I needed to do the swap. These were prices paid, so I have no idea what the going rate is, because some of the things I traded for, and others were purchased.
Tranny: $400 shipped
4.11 LSD rear diff: $250 shipped
JDM TCU: traded a swaybar kit for
JDM rear mounts: traded another rear swaybar kit for
ECUtune TCU upgrade: $259
ECUtune valve body upgrade: $349
+miscellaneous fluids, etc...
TO BE INSTALLED:
remote tranny cooler + fan, controls, etc... $220
So all in all I spent probably around $1,500 USD + the value of the swaybars traded for parts. However, if you wanted, and you could find the tranny for as cheap as I did, you could get by for around $1,000 USD. The ECUtune stuff added a bit of cost, but I figured that now was the time.
So anyway, here's the vid of me driving the car tonight. If there are any more questions please ask! I'd like to help someone else wanting to do this swap.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d27_QwlZk2Q
Like I've commented in the video, there is bit of binding, but the more I think about it, the more I'm leaning towards the fact that the LSD sat in my garage for 2 years, and I'm probably just getting a bit of popping when I'm turning hard. Other than that, it doesn't make any unusual noises, and it really does run great. Once it's broken in a bit, I'm sure it will be just fine.
As always, check back for updates!
-nevin
There are NOT many pictures, because most of the work is just an average tranny swap and there are plenty of threads about that, so mine are a bit more specific.
A little over 2 years ago I saw a 4.11 JDM tranny from a board member in the for sale forum. He'd gotten it when he purchased a JDM WRX motor, and had no need for the transmission. So, lucky for me I got it cheap. Having been told it was a 4.11 transmission, I then purchased a ready-to-go 4.11 LSD rear differential from young tom and figured I was golden.
I then attempted to put the transmission in one fine weekend. Yes, I said attempted. After I finally got the old tranny and everything out, I realzed that it would in fact NOT work with what I had. The thing that I noticed was the rear mount being different. Then began a storm of text and picture messages to tom asking him what on earth I should do. I felt bad for the guy, honestly.
So, I put the old trans back in that same weekend and was very sad because it wasn't what I thought it was. What I thought it was? It was indeed a 4.11 JDM transmission, but there's more to it. The JDM transmission was unlike the USDM one because of a few things. 1. It had a gear-type center diff, which was the only thing I could notice from the outside. This meant that I needed a different rear transmission mount to mount it correctly. 2. It was a constant 35f/65r split which meant I needed the right TCU to run the thing, or I'd be up a creek in no time.
Here are the two transmissions sitting side by side. The only physical difference is the rear snout. The US tranny is nearer, while the JDM one is further away.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap005.jpg
After I figured this out I didn't know what to do. The project was put on the backburner while I was doing other projects. I made an intake for the car, exhaust, and swaybars had begun to eat up a lot of SVX time. After a while, the swaybars are what allowed me to make the connections I needed to get the correct parts to run the tranny in the car.
My hats off to ron (needforspeed) because without his help, I would not have gotten the parts I needed. We traded a few swaybars and transmission components and I think we both came out with a good deal in the end!
So, I finally had the correct rear mounts and the correct TCU. Now what to do? Spend more money on the project, of course! My next contacts were to Michael at ECUtune. Running his 1v5 ECU had given my car some nice pep, so I figured I'd try out a few more of his parts. I shipped the JDM TCU to him and had him work his magic on it. Also, the valvebody was removed and shipped to him so he could perform his upgrades. I want to eventually throw another 30-40% more power at the car, so I wanted the transmission to be able to take it. I figured these things were good insurance. Also purchased (not from ECUtune) was an auxilliary transmission cooler complete with its own 10" fan and thermostat. The stock cooler will be bypassed, but these parts have yet to be installed. That will be another winter project.
So now I had all the parts I needed and I felt I had made the right upgrades, so it was time to put up or shut up! I was attempting the 2nd known tranny swap of this kind in the U.S. (the first being ron)
So, last weekend was the date to do it.
Here's the car all the work was happening to.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap001.jpg
Here's a shot of the tranny out, the rear main seal replaced, and the "kidney" plate taken off and re-sealed, and the flexplate re-installed.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap002.jpg
A shot of one of the rear mounts used in the swap. I say one because the VTD rear mount is actually a 3-piece unit. The amazing thing is that everything bolts exactly into place. I was flabberghasted! I thought for sure I'd have to drill a hole or something, but no. Everything was there waiting for the other parts to be attached. No mods at all to the cradle that held the mounts.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap006.jpg
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap007.jpg
And sorry, I forgot to take pictures of the rear of the tranny in the car at the time, but here's everything all tucked up in there.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap009.jpg
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap010.jpg
And next, me swapping around the TCU components.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e365/wahwahrockwah/trannyswap011.jpg
So, really that about wrapped it up. One mistake I made was accidentally installing the WRX tcu instead of the correct one that Michael had burned me, but once I got that replaced there were really no problems at all.
This was about as easy as a swap as someone could do. Really. The worst part was...I really don't know! All we basically did was take the old one out, put the new mounts on the new tranny, and put it right in. It took us about 5 hours to get it all in, but we really weren't pushing it in any way. Actually, there was lots of standing around and general shooting of the breeze while this was taking place.
I don't have any vids of the car at the track yet, but before the swap it ran a 15.5. I'd really like to run a solid 14, and the way it feels I don't think that's out of line at all.
So, would I recommend the VTD swap to others? Yes, absolutely. Mine was entirely painless once I finally got all the right parts. That would be the trick, actually. You need a JDM TCU to run the thing, and the mounts. I emailed a dealership a while back before I ran into ron, and to get the appropriate mounts was something like $220 shipped to me here in Iowa. Not a horrible price, but not amazing. And keep in mind that when i got mine, I really had no idea what it was. It more or less fell into my posession.
Here are the rough prices (my memory isn't the best) of things that I needed to do the swap. These were prices paid, so I have no idea what the going rate is, because some of the things I traded for, and others were purchased.
Tranny: $400 shipped
4.11 LSD rear diff: $250 shipped
JDM TCU: traded a swaybar kit for
JDM rear mounts: traded another rear swaybar kit for
ECUtune TCU upgrade: $259
ECUtune valve body upgrade: $349
+miscellaneous fluids, etc...
TO BE INSTALLED:
remote tranny cooler + fan, controls, etc... $220
So all in all I spent probably around $1,500 USD + the value of the swaybars traded for parts. However, if you wanted, and you could find the tranny for as cheap as I did, you could get by for around $1,000 USD. The ECUtune stuff added a bit of cost, but I figured that now was the time.
So anyway, here's the vid of me driving the car tonight. If there are any more questions please ask! I'd like to help someone else wanting to do this swap.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d27_QwlZk2Q
Like I've commented in the video, there is bit of binding, but the more I think about it, the more I'm leaning towards the fact that the LSD sat in my garage for 2 years, and I'm probably just getting a bit of popping when I'm turning hard. Other than that, it doesn't make any unusual noises, and it really does run great. Once it's broken in a bit, I'm sure it will be just fine.
As always, check back for updates!
-nevin